In The Silence Between Stars

[Lex_Innokenti]

"We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet." - Stephen Hawking

It is the year 2388, and mankind has possessed faster-than-light drive technology for less than a decade. The revolutionary Voight-DeAvenant void/bubble drive has allowed the human race to finally begin the colonization of the stars in earnest, and in the vanguard of the expansion of the dominion of man are the pioneer teams; brave individuals tasked with seeking out new worlds for colonization, constantly expanding the sphere of human knowledge both literally and metaphorically as they spread ever-further out from Terra. It is two decades before the outbreak of the Secession War, in which the Aurora Pact of Aligned Stars will break away from the increasingly reactionary and cruel Deltan Confederacy of Worlds and lead the human race down the familiar path of war. But that is in the future, and for now... it is a time for adventurers and adventures.

But the pioneers were not the first to soar into the unknown. One hundred and fifty years ago, three great Arkships were launched. Using sub-light drives, these ships picked destinations almost certain to be somewhat habitable, loaded up with crews and passengers who knew for certain that it would be their children's children's children who would stand upon alien worlds. That they would live out their entire lives within the confines of the fragile metal shell that plowed ever onward into a vast blackness between the stars. Two of those Arks, the Odysseus and Armstrong would found the colonies of Geryon and Farshore, respectively. The third, the Magellan, would broadcast back a steady stream of information for twenty years... and then fall silent, never to be heard from again.

Until now, that is.

You are crew-members aboard the pioneer ship DCNV Searchlight, more than a month out at FTL speeds from the nearest occupied space, seeking out new worlds to add to humanity's burgeoning collection. And you've just received a distress signal from the Arkship Magellan.

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So that's the setup. Standard Call of Cthulhu rules with a few (obvious) differences (which will be made clear when necessary).

Investigate why the Magellan stopped sending home, what's happened to it in the intervening century, and perhaps - just perhaps - return home to tell the tale. Any takers?

[Mr. Handy]

I'm a sucker for games in unusual settings, and scenarios set in the future really interest me. I ran one myself not too long ago (The Ninth Planet, set on Pluto in 2112 - it was pre-FTL, though research was being done towards it).

[Lex_Innokenti]

Well, that's one. I'd say the minimum number of players is probably three, maximum six, so we're not far off!

Pioneer ships have a crew of a dozen, so you can have pretty much any role (or roles, there's some doubling up and overlaps) you like, Handy. Any thoughts as to what kind of character you'd like to play?

Oh, thing to note - this is pre-first contact, so no aliens I'm afraid.

[Mr. Handy]

That's fine with me.

I was thinking of playing an engineer.

I'll be away on vacation starting in less than an hour, and I'll be gone through the 29th. I'll be away again from the afternoon of July 3rd through the 7th. However, I'll have time between them and afterwards.

[tormsen]

I'd be interested indeed.

Oh, thing to note - this is pre-first contact, so no aliens I'm afraid.

What other parameters? Any scope for androids (as in the guy from Alien), cyborgs, uplifted animals (like in David Brin or Seaquest), uplifted consciousnesses, holograms, etc? Or just vanilla humans only? I wouldn't mind playing the AI controlling the PCs ship itself

[Lex_Innokenti]

Vanilla humans, only. Though I'll stretch to functional cybernetic implants that would make contextual sense for the character concept (so no hard-light holographic wings or laser death ray eyes, haha). Think the Nostromo from Alien as opposed to The U.S.S Enterprise-D - this is very much a 'used future' setting.

It's actually set in a Universe I've been running Sci-fi games in for years, hence the "this takes place before..." stuff above. First contact with an advanced alien race 'officially' occurs about ten years after our story starts (the K'all'ii, if you were wondering).

Handy, and engineer is great, there would be three engineering specialists aboard the Searchlight and then a further three crew members would have enough engineering knowledge to keep the ship flying (but not necessarily to repair anything catastrophically broken).

The only crew-members 'off the table' for PC's are the Captain, his second in command and the Chief Helmsman (who wouldn't go on away missions for fairly obvious reasons). As previously mentioned, Pioneer ship crews tend to be pretty eccentric, so feel free to have someone with a speciality (or at least an interest) in some fairly esoteric things.

[tormsen]

How about a kind of combination of psychologist and humanist/interfaith chaplain, placed on the crew to maintain moral and emotional support and counselling for the crew as they plumb the unknown depths? Trained in most forms of theology and moral philosophy, he or she is intended to provide psychological and spiritual comfort and stability to crew members regardless of religion or belief system. Also, a deep-seated fascination with aliens and in particular the possibilities inherent in alien modes of thought, spirituality and philosophy. Probably some basic defensive combat skills as well though, to make him or her more than a one-trick pony.

[Lex_Innokenti]

That works for me. Ship's Psych Doctor/backup security guy/girl is an interesting combo and makes sense for a Pioneer vessel. Are you going wide-eyed idealist with the fascination with the alien, or something else?

[Lex_Innokenti]

Come on, only need one more person and we can get on to character creation! Surely someone out there wants to play?

[Mr. Handy]

I'd be a specialist in FTL technology, with an interest in somehow adapting it to make time travel possible.

[Lex_Innokenti]

Alright, let's get on with it. Two players isn't three players, but it's a start, and there'll be plenty of scope for people to join in. Do I need to PM you, Handy, and ask you to create me a board for the game or will requesting it here suffice? I'd quite like to start on the character creation as soon as possible, and hopefully sucker some other vict... I mean player... in in the meantime.

I had a brainwave and decided it might be a good idea to put all of the source material in an online wiki for reference purposes, so here's a link to that. This wiki is in the same setting, but about 200 years later (there won't be any spoilers in it, though):

http://http://auroracentraldatabase.wikidot.com

There isn't much to it yet, but I'll be adding to it as we go.

[Mr. Handy]

Asking me here is good enough. I'll just need a short text blurb, which you can post here, describing the game like you'll see with the other games on the home page. Then I can set up the forum and make you its Keeper. I could use what you put in your initial post in this thread if you like, though it's a bit on the long side.

I'll be away starting Wednesday afternoon and not returning until Sunday night, and I might not have time to post until at least Monday night (it will take me some time to catch up on everything I've missed).

[Lex_Innokenti]

"We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn't want to meet." - Stephen Hawking
The reach of the Great Old Ones stretches out into the stars; far-future Cthulhu with the crew of the Pioneer Ship Searchlight.

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That's okay, Handy. I'll be getting everything organized and up around a fairly busy tail end to the week, anyway. Also gives me time to find another player or two, maybe.

[Mr. Handy]

We're all set! I've created the forum here.

[Lex_Innokenti]

Thanks, Handy.

I'm going to provisionally say I'll have everything up ready for character creation by Monday morning (my time, so GMT). In the meantime, please feel free to head over and check out the wiki mentioned earlier and start chattering in Off Topic Comms. Any questions you'd like answered before you start rolling at the beginning of next week, let me know.

[Lex_Innokenti]

Been a bit of a mad week this end, can I just get some confirmation that anyone's still interested...?

I'm pretty keen to get started, and maybe draft in a couple of other players with the scintillating nature of my storytelling (hahaha)...

[Mr. Handy]

I'm still interested, I just haven't had time to create my character yet.

[trilobite]

I'm interested. Thinking about a doctor/biologist.

[Lex_Innokenti]

Great!

Head on over to the boards and have a quick look at The Character Creation Station, and dive right in!

You can find In The Silence Between Stars by clicking the link.